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Jawaharlal Nehru ( ,
pronounced ; 14 November 1889–27 May 1964) was an Indianstatesman who was the , and has been the
longest-serving prime
minister of India to date,
having served from 1947 until 1964.A leading figure in
the Indian independence
movement, Nehru was elected by the Congress party to assume
office as independent India's first
Prime Minister, and later
when the Congress won India's first general election in
1952. As one of the founders of the Non-aligned Movement, he was also an
important figure in the international politics of the post-war era. He is frequently referred to as
Pandit Nehru ("pandit" being
a Sanskrit and Hindihonorific meaning "scholar" or "teacher")
and, specifically in India, as Panditji (with
"-ji" being a suffix to the
honorific).

Nehru was
given the singular honour of raising the flag of independent India
in New
Delhi on 15 August 1947, when India gained
Independence. Nehru's appreciation of the virtues of
parliamentary democracy, secularism and liberalism coupled with
concerns for the poor and underprivileged are recognised to have
guided him in formulating policies that influence India to this
day. They also reflect the socialist origins of his worldview. His
long tenure was instrumental in shaping the traditions and
structures of independent India. He is sometimes referred to as the
'Architect of Modern India'. His daughter, Indira Gandhi, and grandson, Rajiv Gandhi, also served as Prime Ministers of
India.

India's first Prime Minister

Nehru and his colleagues had been released as the British Cabinet Mission arrived to
propose plans for transfer of power.

"Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now
the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in
full measure, but very substantially.

At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world
sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.

A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when
we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the
soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance.

It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the
pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to
the still larger cause of humanity."

However, this period was marked with intense communal violence.
This
violence swept across the Punjab
region, Delhi, Bengal and other
parts of India. Nehru conducted joint tours with Pakistani
leaders to encourage peace and calm angry and disillusioned
refugees. Nehru would work with Maulana Azad and other Muslim
leaders to safeguard and encourage Muslims to remain in India. The
violence of the time deeply affected Nehru, who called for a
ceasefire and UN intervention to stop the
Indo-Pakistani War of
1947. Fearing communal reprisals, Nehru also hesitated in
supporting the annexation of Hyderabad
State.

In the years following independence, Nehru frequently turned to his
daughter Indira to look after him and manage his personal affairs.
Under his leadership, the Congress won an overwhelming majority in
the elections of 1952. Indira moved into Nehru's official residence
to attend to him. Indira would virtually become Nehru's chief of staff and constant
companion in his travels across India and the world.

Nehru's study in Teen Murti
Bhavan.

Economic policies

Nehru presided over the introduction of a modified, Indian version
of state planning and control over the economy. Creating the
Planning commission of
India, Nehru drew up the first Five-Year Plan in 1951, which
charted the government's investments in industries and agriculture.
Increasing business and income taxes, Nehru envisaged a mixed economy in which the government would
manage strategic industries such as mining, electricity and heavy
industries, serving public interest and a check to private
enterprise. Nehru pursued land
redistribution and launched programmes to build irrigation
canals, dams and spread the use of fertilizers to increase
agricultural production. He also pioneered a series of
community development programs aimed at spreading diverse
cottage industries and increasing
efficiency into rural India. While encouraging the construction of
large dams (which Nehru called the 'new temples of India'),
irrigation works and the generation of hydroelectricity, Nehru also launched
India's programme to harness nuclear
energy.

For most of Nehru's term as prime minister, India would continue to
face serious food shortages despite progress and increases in
agricultural production. Nehru's industrial policies, summarised in
the Industrial Policy Resolution of 1956, encouraged the growth of
diverse manufacturing and heavy industries, yet state planning,
controls and regulations began to impair productivity, quality and
profitability. Although the Indian economy enjoyed a steady rate of
growth, chronic unemployment amidst widespread poverty continued to
plague the population.

Education and social reform

Jawaharlal Nehru was a passionate advocate of education for India's
children and youth, believing it essential for India's future
progress. His government oversaw the establishment of many
institutions of higher learning, including the All India Institute of
Medical Sciences, the Indian Institutes of
Technology and the Indian Institutes of
Management. Nehru also outlined a commitment in his five-year
plans to guarantee free and compulsory primary education to all of
India's children. For this purpose, Nehru oversaw the creation of
mass village enrollment programmes and the construction of
thousands of schools. Nehru also launched initiatives such as the
provision of free milk and meals to children in order to fight
malnutrition. Adult education centres, vocational and technical
schools were also organised for adults, especially in the rural
areas.

Under Nehru, the Indian Parliament enacted many changes to Hindu
law to criminalize caste discrimination and increase the legal
rights and social freedoms of women

. A system of reservations in government services and educational
institutions was created to eradicate the social inequalities and
disadvantages faced by peoples of the scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes. Nehru also championed secularism and religious
harmony, increasing the representation of minorities in
government.

National security and foreign policy

Nehru led newly independent India from 1947 to 1964, during its first years of freedom from British rule. Both the United States and the Union Soviet Socialist Republic have competed to make India an ally throughout the cold war.

Although having promised in 1948 to hold a plebiscite in Kashmir under the auspices of the
U.N. but as Pakistan failed to pull back troops as per UN
resolution and as Nehru grew increasingly wary of the U.N., he
declined to hold a plebiscite in 1953. He ordered the arrest of the
Kashmiri politician Sheikh Abdullah,
whom he had previously supported but now suspected of harbouring
separatist ambitions; Bakshi
Ghulam Mohammad replaced him. On the international scene, Nehru
was a champion of pacifism and a strong
supporter of the United Nations. He
pioneered the policy of non-alignment
and co-founded the Non-Aligned
Movement of nations professing neutrality between the rival
blocs of nations led by the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. Recognising the
People's Republic of China soon after its founding (while most of
the Western bloc continued relations with the Republic of
China), Nehru argued for its inclusion in the United
Nations and refused to brand the Chinese as the aggressors in their
conflict with Korea. He sought to establish warm and
friendly relations with it despite the invasion of Tibet in 1950, and hoped to act as an intermediary to
bridge the gulf and tensions between the communist states and the
Western bloc. This policy of pacifism and appeasement with
respect to China soon came unraveled when China annexed Aksai Chin, the region of Kashmir adjoining
Tibet in 1962 that led to the Sino-Indian war.

Nehru was hailed by many for working to defuse global tensions and
the threat of nuclear weapons. He commissioned the first study of
the human effects of nuclear explosions, and campaigned ceaselessly
for the abolition of what he called "these frightful engines of
destruction." He also had pragmatic reasons for promoting
de-nuclearisation, fearing that a nuclear arms race would lead to
over-militarisation that would be unaffordable for developing
countries such as his own.

In 1956 he
had criticised the joint invasion of the Suez Canal by the British, French and Israelis.
Suspicion and distrust cooled relations between India and the U.S.,
which suspected Nehru of tacitly supporting the Soviet Union.
Accepting the arbitration of the UK and World Bank, Nehru signed
the Indus Water Treaty in 1960
with Pakistani ruler Ayub Khan to resolve
long-standing disputes about sharing the resources of the major
rivers of the Punjab region.

Final years

Nehru had led the Congress to a major victory in the 1957
elections, but his government was facing rising problems and
criticism. Disillusioned by intra-party corruption and bickering,
Nehru contemplated resigning but continued to serve. The election
of his daughter Indira as Congress President in 1959 aroused
criticism for alleged nepotism , although
Nehru disapproved of her election, partly because he considered it
smacked of "dynastism"; he said, indeed it was "wholly undemocratic
and an undesirable thing", and refused her a position in his
cabinet. Indira herself was at loggerheads with her
father over policy; most notably, she used his oft-stated personal
deference to the Congress
Working Committee to push through the dismissal of the Communist Party of India government
in the state of Kerala, over his
own objections. Nehru began to be frequently embarrassed by
her ruthlessness and disregard for parliamentary tradition, and was
"hurt" by what he saw as an assertiveness with no purpose other
than to stake out an identity independent of her father.

Although the Pancha Sila (Five
Principles of Peaceful Coexistence) was the basis of the 1954
Sino-Indian treaty over Tibet, in later years, Nehru's foreign
policy suffered through increasing Chinese antagonism over border
disputes and Nehru's decision to grant asylum to the Dalai
Lama. After years of failed negotiations, Nehru
authorized the Indian Army to annex Goa
from Portugal in 1961. See liberation of Goa. While increasing his
popularity, Nehru received criticism for opting for military
action.

In a matter of months, the border disputes with China turned into
open conflict. Nehru assumed that as former victims of imperialism
(India being a colony itself) they shared a sense of solidarity, as
expressed in the phrase "Hindi-Chini bhai bhai" (Indians and
Chinese are brothers). He was dedicated to the ideals of
brotherhood and solidarity among developing nations. Nehru, naively, did
not believe that one fellow Socialist country would attack another;
and in any event, he felt secure behind the impregnable wall of ice
that is the Himalayas. Both proved to be severe miscalculations of
China's intentions and military capabilities. Following reports of
his intention to confront Chinese occupation of the disputed
areas—summarised in a memorable statement that he had asked the
Army to "throw them (Chinese) out" - China launched a pre-emptive
attack.

In a
matter of days, a Chinese invasion
of northeastern India exposed the weaknesses of India's military as
Chinese forces came as far as Assam.
Widely criticised for his government's insufficient attention to
defence, Nehru was forced to sack the defence minister Krishna Menon and seek U.S. military aid.
Nehru's health began declining steadily, and he was forced to spend
months recuperating in Kashmir through 1963. Some historians
attribute this dramatic decline to his surprise and chagrin over
the invasion of India by the Chinese, which he perceived as a
betrayal of trust. Upon his return from Kashmir in May 1964, Nehru
suffered a stroke and later a heart attack. He died in the early
hours of 27 May 1964. Nehru was cremated in accordance with Hindu
rites at the Shantivana on the banks of the Yamuna River, witnessed by hundreds of thousands of mourners who
had flocked into the streets of Delhi and the cremation
grounds.

"Nehru was a great man... Nehru gave
to Indians an image of themselves that I don't think others might
have succeeded in doing." - Sir Isaiah
Berlin

Nehru is credited for establishing a widespread system of affirmative action to provide equal
opportunities and rights for India's ethnic groups, minorities,
women, scheduled caste
and scheduled tribes. Nehru's
passion for egalitarianism meant that
he put the state to work to try and end widespread practices of
discrimination against women and depressed classes, though with
limited success in his lifetime.

Nevertheless, Nehru's stance as a unfailing nationalist led him to
also implement policies which stressed commonality among Indians
while still appreciating regional diversities. This proved
particularly important as post-Independence differences surfaced
since British withdrawal from the subcontinent prompted regional
leaders to no longer relate to one another as allies against a
common adversary. While differences of culture and, especially,
language threatened the unity of the new nation, Nehru established
programs such as the National Book Trust and the National Literary
Academy which promoted the translation of regional literatures
between languages and also organized the transfer of materials
between regions. In pursuit of a single, unified India, Nehru
warned, "Integrate or perish."

Commemoration

In his lifetime, Jawaharlal Nehru enjoyed an iconic status in India
and was widely admired across the world for his idealism and
statesmanship. His birthday, 14 November, is celebrated in India as
Children's Day in recognition of his lifelong passion and
work for the welfare, education and development of children and
young people. Children across India remember him as Chacha
Nehru (Uncle Nehru). Nehru remains a popular symbol of the
Congress party which frequently celebrates his memory. Congress
leaders and activists often emulate his style of clothing,
especially the Gandhi cap, and
his mannerisms. Nehru's ideals and policies continue to shape the
Congress party's manifesto and core
political philosophy. An emotional attachment to his legacy was
instrumental in the rise of his daughter Indira to leadership of
the Congress party and the national government.

Numerous public institutions and memorials across India are
dedicated to Nehru's memory. The Jawaharlal Nehru University in
Delhi is among the most prestigious universities in India. The
Jawaharlal Nehru Port near the
city of Mumbai is a modern port and dock designed to handle a huge cargo and
traffic load. Nehru's residence in Delhi is preserved as
the Nehru
Memorial Museum and Library. The Nehru family homes at Anand Bhavan and
Swaraj Bhavan are also preserved to
commemorate Nehru and his family's legacy.

Criticism

D.D.Kosambi, a well-known marxist
historian criticised Nehru in his article for the bourgeoisie class exploitation of Nehru's
socialist ideology for its own purposes.

Jaswant Singh, a former BJP leader,
viewed Nehru, not Mohammad Ali Jinnah, as causing the partition of
India, mostly referring to his highly centralised policies for an
independent India in 1947, which Jinnah opposed in favour of a more
decentralised India. The split between the two was among the causes
of partition. Singh was later expelled from the BJP for having
favourable views on Jinnah.

Nehru has also been criticized by Sikhs. Many promises made by
Nehru about the constitution that were reassured by M.K. Gandhi
were broken.

See also

Tryst with destiny the
historic speech made by Jawaharlal Nehru, considered in modern
India to be a landmark oration that captures the essence of the
triumphant culmination of the hundred-year Indian freedom struggle
against the British Empire in India.